The present disclosure relates generally to motor drives and more particularly to techniques and apparatus for energy efficient AC motor drive standby operation. Motor drives operate AC electrical motors using power from an AC or DC input source. In many industrial operations utilizing electric motor drives, it is useful to stop the driven motor while maintaining the drive in a standby mode for subsequent resumption of motor operation. Moreover, in controlled industrial operations, the switching between normal and standby modes may be automated, with suitable commands for entering and exiting the standby mode being generated by industrial control components interconnected with the motor drive. However, it is important to conserve energy in operation of such automated systems, and conventional standby mode operation of motor drives consumes excessive amounts of power. Thus, there remains a need for improved motor drive apparatus and techniques by which power consumption during standby operation can be reduced.